The last few days you may have asked yourself, "What the heck was THAT?!?!" following a loud, concussive, window-rattling boom.

Was it a sonic boom? Is Yakima being bombed?

The answer is a little more understandable once you know the source. For those that have lived in the upper Yakima Valley for very long are likely so used to it by know that it almost goes unnoticed.

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10th Mountain Troops Train For Upcoming Deployments
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According to a recent post on their official Facebook page, the Yakima Training Center, located northeast of Selah, is currently involved in military training activities through Wednesday (July 28). They caution all to be prepared for "increased noise" throughout the completion of the  field artillery exercises live fire training.

While it can catch you off guard and, sometimes, seem like it happened next door, do not be terribly alarmed. It is simply our servicemen and women going through their paces to keep us all safe and secure.

Before it was known as the Yakima Training Center, the original 160,000 acres of land were leased by the US Army during World War II from 1942-1946, according to Wikipedia. Then  "in 1951 the Army purchased 261,000 acres for the Yakima Firing Center, which would become the modern Yakima Training Center."

Besides being used for field exercises and training to replicate actual combat, the training center is also home to part of a global surveillance network in conjunction with the National Security Agency (NSA) that monitors communication -- including your cell phone calls -- via satellites orbiting the entire globe.

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